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T etiquette: Subway poles are for grasping with hands, not leaning your nasty-ass back against

Najah snapped photos of a woman on the Green Line at rush hour who tried to use an entire pole to lean against so she could keep her hands free for holding the World's Largest Ice Coffee and keeping up with the day's news on her phone:

Despite multiple people expressing that she was hurting them, this woman couldn’t imagine any way to stop leaning on the pole. A PSA for pole learners: you *can* turn around and hold the pole like everyone else or ask for a seat.

so I would start yelling "Ow, owwwww! You're hurting my hand! Ow!" in an annoying whiny voice until she moved. If she didn't move, she'd have to listen to me the whole trip. It would be so annoying, that the others holding onto the pole would also be annoyed with me, but oh well. That's how I roll.

How about the lady loosely looping her arm around the pole and she can corral the pole if needed. She still can use both hands for her coffee & phone then and not be rude and hog the pole with her back.

And I do realize that people are also concerned about theft - they don't want to put their bag down and have someone run off with it.

That said, people need to be able to apply a little sense. Not all situations are the same. If there's only one other person on the train, and they're way at the far end, then who cares if you lean on a pole? It makes no difference.

Taking a backpack off does not mean, putting it directly in someone else's way so they can't get around you. When in doubt, see Rule #1.

Yes. That's right. Breathing. If a sick person is in your area, they don't even have to be coughing. Just breathing.

Touching things can get you some nice Norovirus, but it DOES NOT put viral particles into your respiratory system. This is an old wives' tale that needs to end. It has never been demonstrated in any scientific fashion - quite the opposite.

I would of faced her, if I could or as much as I could, and reached my arm over the middle of her head to grab the pole above her head so my arm would be up against her face. This would also necessitate that my body be up against hers.

But if multiple people really did say "Please don't lean on the pole. It's keeping me from holding on," and this person ignored them, I would conclude they have some serious personality problems and I'd move away from them ASAP.

Positioning yourself without holding on so you fall into this person is a good way to hurt yourself, and get into a nasty altercation if they're really as antisocial as they appear.

When I drove rideshare, I always believed that Uber vehicles with multiple passengers should be able to share the B line tracks, since they're providing better service. Heck, at four passengers, it's cheaper than the T if you're not going too far.

I'm not a nice person on the T. Riding for 20+ years has made me this way.

That woman would have gotten a shove from me if she squished my hand. Or an elbow or something. I do not have time for rude people on the T.

Someone the other day, who had a large backpack on... was standing in front of me (as I was sitting down). Every few minutes he'd smack me in the face with his backpack. I finally pushed him away and said "excuse me" "do you mind" "and take off your backpack"

Ladies didn't have the right to vote, nor did women. Perhaps you'd like to return to a society based on an outdated, paternalistic view that women need to be "protected" and "taken care of" but many of us believe that women are capable of standing on their own two feet, both literally and figuratively.

When the train is crowded, the first priority has to be for people to pack as densely as possible so as to allow more people to get on. If everyone is at arm's length from the handle, then there's a gap of a foot or two which could have people in it, and that's horrible. (People don't even really need to hold onto the rail if the train is crowded enough, since you don't have enough room to fall. It doesn't quite look that crowded, though.)

The real problem is that the other pictures show that these whole scene is taking place in the area near the entrance, and although it might partially be a perspective trick there seems to be more room near the camera. (Which I think is closer to the bendy area.) Move into the center of the train, damn it. That's rule number one.

If my hand was being crushed my house keys might magically appear in my hand, pointed end facing the person's back. When she complained about something sticking her in the back.... Doubt if she would discover anyone cared.